


The Missing Link

by rasputinberries



Category: Iron Giant (1999)
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Awkward Romance, Based on a Tumblr Post, Canon Relationships, Children, Diners, F/M, Fluff, Love Confessions, Mid-Canon, Mother-Son Relationship, One Shot, Post-Canon, Single Parents, Waiters & Waitresses, Wordcount: 1.000-5.000, i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-04
Updated: 2016-03-04
Packaged: 2018-05-24 15:52:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6158743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rasputinberries/pseuds/rasputinberries
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It turns out Hogarth's curiosity was the inciting incident in Annie and Dean's budding relationship.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Missing Link

**Author's Note:**

> Based on this prompt: http://otpprompts.tumblr.com/post/133244122024/imagine-person-a-is-a-single-parent-to-a-curious

Hogarth trudged through the door, kicking the December snow off his boots. It was much too icy for him to ride his bike to his mother's workplace, so the nine-year-old opted for walking to the diner after school. He sat his backpack next to one of the bar stools and hung up his thick winter coat on top of the bag.

"Hey, Mom," he replied with a typical innocent smile, climbing onto the stool and leaning on the counter.

"Afternoon, honey," Annie Hughes replied, holding a coffeepot. "Did you have a good day at school?"

The boy nodded, as if by instinct, though he genuinely _had_ had fun in class. The material was always interesting and it seemed that he was becoming... popular. There were some kids who actually talked to him, and not just when they were calling him names like "nerd" or "dork".

He turned his head to scope out the customers. Just the usual Rockwell crowd: Mr. Stutz, some of the other men from town, a few teenagers, an elderly couple, but one guest stood out to him.

"You'll never guess who's here today!" the child exclaimed in delight and a sense of pride at his own observation. He was sure he would stump his mother this time!

The waitress cupped her chin and tilted her head. "Hmm... It wouldn't happen to be..." She drew out her words. "... _Dean_?"

Hogarth was both amused and surprised by his mom's response. "Yeah, but how'd you know?"

"I work here, dear. Dean comes here all the time," she remarked. Annie had just served him his second cup of coffee a few minutes ago, as a matter of fact. This was the usual for him. Coffee, and occasionally a hamburger and fries or some pancakes. In fact, she and Dean were becoming friends, or maybe even a little closer than friends. A light smile decorated her face as she overlooked the booth at which junkyard-dwelling artist was sitting.

He fiddled with a few coins in his pocket before spilling them onto the counter. "Vanilla milkshake, please," he ordered in his best grown-up voice as Annie put the change in the cash register. Then he changed the subject back again. "Dean's nice, Mom, don't you think so?" the boy asked. A rhetorical question, really.

"Of course," the auburn-haired woman replied. "Mr. McCoppin is a very nice man-" She caught herself looking at him again and turned back to her son to explain herself. "Oh, better see if he wants more to drink!"

By this point, Hogarth was beginning to catch on. "Mom, you keep looking at Dean like that," he noted, blue eyes starting to light up in observance.

A coy look permeated the waitress' face. "Like what?"

"You know. The smile." He seemed self-assured, like a detective who had solved a case. "Do you _like_ Dean?"

Annie tried to hide the fact that she was starting to blush. "Hogarth! What kind of question is _that_? Shh, I don't know, just- uh..."

He beamed with satisfaction, thinking he was quite clever. "But you _do_! You like Dean! I know you do!"

"Shh, quiet down, honey," she urged, gesturing for Hogarth to sit back down onto the stool. "I need to go take his order, okay? Just stay here." She walked out from behind the counter with the coffeepot.

For a few seconds Hogarth sat on the stool, watching the clock, but his curiosity couldn't be satisfied. He snuck off and hid behind Dean's booth, listening in on what was to happen.

"More coffee, Mr. McCoppin?" Annie offered. "And... anything else?" Her face still wore the gentle rosy blush as she spoke to the beatnik.

"Yes, please," the dark-haired man replied, taking off his sunglasses to reveal dark eyes full of interest. "And maybe just a piece of toast with jam," he added.

The pink-uniformed waitress refilled the mug with a nod, then jotted something down on her notepad. "Got it."

"You know you can just call me Dean. I said so the first time we met, remember?" He raised an eyebrow.

Not knowing what to say, she nodded and blurted, "Yeah, okay. Dean." The name fit well coming from her lips. She recalled the first time they'd met, just in October, and her initial annoyance at him, but she'd come to really... like him. Hogarth was right.

"You know, just the other day I was talking to your son." Dean's smile was charming yet nervous at the same time. "And you know what he said? He said that he thinks you've got something you're hiding from me. Like, feelings for me or something."

Annie's own laugh thinly veiled the slight embarrassment she felt. "Ahaha, you know Hogarth. He's nine. Ha, kids are like that, I guess," she began.

It wasn't soon after that her son emerged, facing Dean and nodding. "It's true! Mom really, really does like you!" he proclaimed, all the enthusiasm evident in his tone.

"Hogarth, what did I tell you about bothering customers?" the waitress half-chided, before the kid decided to scamper off to leave the two adults alone. Annie's voice came out more like a nervous stammer, while her flustered expression gave testimony to her true feelings.

"Hey, hey, it's fine," the artist added casually. "So, is it really true? I mean- I think I'm with your son here."

Ms. Hughes decided that denying it was pointless. She twirled a loose strand of hair. "Y-yeah, I guess you've got a point there," she chuckled. "I mean, if you're okay with it?"

"Yeah... I'm okay. So..." The beatnik twiddled his thumbs; picking up on Annie's own body language. Guess neither of them were really experts here. "So, I think it's really cool if you feel like that. In fact, I was kinda wondering if you'd like to go on a date- like, a _real_ date- sometime?"

The nerves seemed to calm as Annie heeded the offer. "I would enjoy that very much, Dean." She gave him a warm, genuine smile, glad that even if it had been a little awkward to deal with, everything she'd been feeling had come out. "Matter of fact, I'm free tomorrow evening. So, guess I'll see you then," she said with a grin that could hardly hide her excitement for the date, as she left to attend to her other customers.

Maybe it was a good thing that Hogarth asked so many questions.


End file.
